My laptop died and refused to come back to life and it happened just when I wanted to start blogging again. Really. Not lying.

October! I got teary randomly thinking of my grandmom and everybody at back home. Even though it was just a month, it was intense. The fear of losing loved ones was over the top and it wasn't helping me at all. I dived into cooking which sometimes is a stress buster. So, this month I mastered Shami Kebabs! 

Finally sharing my fail proof #shamikabab recipe on the blog as part of #mfbchallenge 😍 Detailed written recipe on the blog and step by step Pics on highlights here... #indianfood #pakistanifood #shallowfried #freezerfriendly #blogger Link in bio. What next?

A post shared by Famidha Ashraf (@fashfaiz) on Nov 10, 2018 at 4:20am PST

I made some chocolate cupcakes for the first time in a pressure cooker with some kinda frosting that I whipped up last minute using peanut butter. I got 6 cupcakes and we shared one to check the taste because I was taking them to Rehab's home for dinner. Upon reaching her place, I realized I should have made more as there were two other families. Two got eaten immediately and the rest that rested on the kitchen counter got eaten by the ants. LOL. I felt so sad but wanted to make these again for her soon and I did. :-) This time same chocolate cupcakes but made a proper peanut butter buttercream and tried my hands in piping too. I was so happy with the results but our madam was out of town lol. Well, thankfully she was back the next day! Not that it would go for waste because I have a sugar monster at home. 

Soft and fluffy #chocolatecupcakes baked in pressure cooker with creamiest #peanutbutterfrosting to feed the starving #sugarmonster 😋👽 Amateur attempts at piping ... I was having a joyful moment doing it...SWIPE for more... Chocolate cupcake recipe adapted from @cleobuttera and peanut butter frosting recipe from @sallysbakeblog We had one each and shared the rest with @rehab.salim91 #eatdessertfirst #sugaraddiction #cupcakewrappers #bakingforfriends #bakingforkids #caretoshare

A post shared by Famidha Ashraf (@fashfaiz) on Oct 27, 2018 at 7:39am PDT

Recipe links

The best Chocolate Cupcakes and the best Peanut butter buttercream

And then the attempts to use up the date paste packs...DATE ENERGY BALLS

I picked two packs of #datepaste to make bradj as eid sweets for friends and neighbours but it just didn’t happen. So have been trying to use it up now making different kinds of #energyballs. 😝 Date Tahini Energy Balls 250 grams date paste 4 tbsp tahini 4 tbsp mix of flax meal and almond meal Pinch of salt 1/2 tsp cardamom powder Mix really well ... this is the only task that makes it taste good so make sure you mix well. and warm in microwave for 20 seconds and make balls Roll each while still warm on toasted sesame or pistachio Eat immediately or refrigerate for laters! 😎😋😋😋 What is still waiting for you in your pantry? I have a sachet of creme caramel 😆

A post shared by Famidha Ashraf (@fashfaiz) on Oct 15, 2018 at 8:18am PDT

When Rehab and her two sons came home for breakfast to play with my cats! 

Are five months too long ago? Well, because this fresh figs jam with balsamic vinegar was made in April 2018 and it did not last even a month! It was such a delicious concoction of fresh figs in sugar and the supporting actor balsamic vinegar that gave the oomph factor to this simple homemade jam. I had clicked the pictures with the sole intention of blogging it but it just never happened until now!

Why now? Remember #mfbchallenge? I could not participate from the start of this year and 2018 is coming to an end already! :-( This month's theme was to share "Back to School Lunch Box Ideas". Honestly, I thought of giving it a pass this time too, but then I remembered this jam recipe! I won't tag it as back to school, but a very easy "back to office" lunchbox idea as the flavours of this jam is for the grownups! :-)